Arsenal in talks over £5.8m deal for Brazilian midfielder Maycon

According to a report in Brazilian outlet esporte, Arsenal have made contact with Corinthians to ask for more information regarding highly-rated midfielder Maycon.

Arsene Wenger is gearing up for a busy summer and has already splashed out around £30m on Swiss international Granit Xhaka while we’re also on the look-out for a new striker after being snubbed by Jamie Vardy.

However, while established first team players is at the forefront of Wenger’s mind, it looks as though the boss is also looking ahead to the future as Brazilian outlet esporte claims we’ve approached Corinthians about their talented midfielder Maycon.

The report states that Arsenal officials have asked the Brazilian outfit for more information on Maycon’s physical state as well as how much a potential deal would cost us this summer to acquire the highly-rated youngster.

It’s claimed by esporte that Arsenal are hoping to secure a deal similar to the one Juventus agreed for Matheus Pereira that saw the youngster move to Turin for an initial €2m (£1.6m) with the fee rising to €7m (£5.8m) with performance-based add ons.

Maycon has been with Corinthians since joining the club as an 11-year-old back in 2009 and has progressed through the youth ranks before breaking in to the first team set-up this year.

The player turns 19 next month and is regarded as one of the hottest young talents in Brazilian football, but he’s still struggling to get regular minutes with the Corinthians first team and has spent much of the season with the U-20’s.

Maycon wouldn’t qualify for a work permit as he’s only represented Brazil at U-17 level so we’d need to apply for a ‘special talent’ visa if we did push ahead with a move for the teenager this summer. Otherwise, he’d have to be sent out to a European club for a couple of years to gain a passport, but even that could depend on several factors after Britain voted to leave the EU.

It’s never easy buying youngsters from South America but get it right and we could have the new Messi or Neymar on our hands!